Insurance

Health-Care Bill Passes Senate Committee

March 15, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Inc. Com</p> <p>"This bill has been sold as a way for small-business owners to lower health-care costs," said Jerry Flanagan, health-care policy director for the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, a Santa Monica, Calif.-based consumer-rights group. "But this is all about giving more power to HMOs and insurance companies. It will give insurers more power to raise rates."</p>

Editorial: Auto insurance overhaul;

March 15, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Premiums will depend more on driving record</h3><p class="source">Sacramento Bee</p> <p>For auto insurance buyers, the most important thing to understand is that under the Garamendi rules, where a driver lives will still count. It just won't count more than, say, whether a driver caused an accident last year. That's both fair and reasonable. It's also what the law requires.</p>

Senate looking at new insurance options for small businesses

March 14, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">Associated Press</p> <p>Critics say that letting insurers bypass state protections gives consumers a false sense of security. "People will think they have coverage, but when you need health care, when you need treatment, your insurance company will say, 'no, look at the fine print,'" said Jerry Flanagan, spokesman for the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, a Los Angeles-based advocacy group.</p>

Health-insurance bill gains traction

March 14, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Wall Street Journal </p> <p>The Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, a consumer group in Santa Monica, Calif., complained that the legislation could mean the loss of state protections such as California's requirement that women have a right to visit a gynecologist. "A panoply of patient services could... be eviscerated," including the right to a second opinion from a doctor, the group said. </p>

Terminating Food Warning Labels

March 9, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">California's Congressional Delegation remarked yesterday that California's Gov was remarkably silent as the House of Representatives passed legislation preventing California from warning...</font>

Automobile Rates & Good Driver Discount Plan

March 9, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<!-- excerpt -->

State-run auto plan expands in area;

February 23, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>LOW-COST POLICIES FOR SOME DRIVERS</h3> <p class="source"> San Jose Mercury News (California) </p> <p> Doug Heller, executive director for the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, said the low-cost program is making the roads safer for all drivers. But it shouldn't be seen as a panacea for all people. "This is not something you shop for if you already have insurance and you're getting by,'' Heller said. "This is for people who can't afford to buy insurance, or who have been stuck with the decision to either driver illegally or not drive at all.'' </p>

Going Low Octane

February 21, 2006  ·  Jamie Court

<p class="source">Marketplace Morning Report (NPR Radio)</p> <p>The truth is, unless you're driving a higher performance car, or an old muscle car of the past, gas is gas. Oil companies' marketing claims over the need for higher octane fuel used to be ever bigger hooey. The Federal trade Commission stepped in the 1990s to force fairer representations. With oil companies now recording record profits, they have even more money to make bigger marketing boasts. But the truth is no different: Buy the cheapest gasoline you can find unless your automaker tells you otherwise.</p>

AUTO RATES COULD GO UP;

February 15, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Monterey County: Farm Bureau Opposes insurance changes</h3><p class="source">Monterey County Herald (California)</p> <p>The California state Department of Insurance and the Santa Monica-based Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, which is advocating Garamendi's proposed changes, say the numbers are deceptive. "That's an incomplete study," said department spokesman Williams. "We did commission that study. When we completed it, the insurance industry itself told us the information was wrong."</p>

Pact Profits Family of Supervisor;

February 15, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>Knabe's son lobbied for firm that won a county contract. His wife was then paid to throw bash.</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p> <p>Said Doug Heller, executive director of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, a nonpartisan group based in Santa Monica: "When his son is getting paid by the company and his wife is later paid by the company, it brings a real stink to the process."</p>

Mrs. Bayh’s directorship raises issue for some

February 14, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<p class="source">The Indianapolis Star (Indiana)</p> <p>"Given that she has a high-profile role with the company and that this is a company that could benefit from the legislative actions of her husband, there is definitely a potential for a conflict of interest," said Alex Knott, political editor for the Center for Public Integrity, a nonpartisan group in Washington. Watchdog organizations Public Citizen and the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights echoed those concerns.</p>

Prosper: The eBay of Loans?;

February 14, 2006  ·  Consumer Watchdog

<h3>E-Loan co-founder Chris Larsen's online marketplace matches lenders and borrowers. Banks and "payday" outfits alike will be watching closely</h3><p class="source">BusinessWeek Online</p> <p>Some consumer advocates are already cheering. "I think this could be David's stone hitting the banking industry between the eyes," says Jamie Court, president of The Foundation for Taxpayer & Consumer Rights, a nonprofit consumer-advocacy group in Santa Monica, Calif. "Chris is stripping the banks and other middlemen out of the business. It should be a huge, transformative event."</p>